David Bowie: Ultimate Mix

David Bowie, with his unique, ever-changing image and musical-style, has proven himself as one of the most innovative artists in music over the course of his 45-year career.

From his early musical emergence with "Space Oddity," through the outrageous Ziggy Stardust era, to his notable collaborations with Brian Eno, further still to widespread commercial success in the '80s, and finally back to more musical experimentation in recent times, Bowie has become a true rock n' roll shape-shifter. He's done it all.

A digital mini-fig likeness of Bowie appears in LEGO Rock Band, and the singer's 1983 hit "Let's Dance" is on the track list there as well as on Activision's newly released Band Hero. That's inspired us to take a look back over the music legend's career and press play on this Ultimate Mix.

"Space Oddity"

David Bowie first made waves on the UK scene in 1969 with "Space Oddity," a trippy tune about an astronaut, Major Tom, who (rather indifferently) becomes lost in space. The song was notably featured during the BBC's coverage of the Apollo 11 moon landing. And it's remained a pop cultural fixture. Of late, U2 have been playing "Space Oddity" over the PA to set the mood before taking the stage on their 360 tour.

"Ashes to Ashes"

Bowie resurrected Major Tom in 1980 on the song "Ashes to Ashes," the first single from his Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) album. Major Tom was this time styled as a sort of autobiographical metaphor for Bowie. The New Wave-ish song sees Bowie contemplating the end of his period of 1970s excesses. The lyrics refer to the iconic spaceman as a "junkie, strung out in heaven's high, hitting an all time low," a reference to Bowie's bout with drug addiction.

"Hallo Spaceboy"

There's no better sampling of Bowie's musical trajectory than the Major Tom Trilogy. On the song "Hallo Spaceboy," from Bowie's 1996 album Outside, he once again revisits the sonic spaceman. A collaboration with legendary producer Brian Eno, the album version of the song is a industrial rock number. The commercially released single, however, was a dance-oriented Pet Shop Boys remix with additional lyrics sung by Neil Tennant. The two versions are quite different, but both are worthy of inclusion in this mix.

"Changes"

"Changes," from David Bowie's 1972 record Hunky Dory, has become one of the artist's most popular songs, but believe it or not the glam rock tune didn't even crack the top 40 upon its initial release. The track is often correlated with Bowie's ever-evolving musical style and his penchant for reinventing himself. "Changes" was a staple during live performances of Bowie's Ziggy Stardust era. Bowie often expressed surprise at the longterm success of the song, which he initially viewed as a "throwaway" parody of a nightclub song. "I had no idea it would become such a popular thing," he says in the liner notes of the Sound + Vision box set.

"Blue Jean"

"Blue Jean" was a top 10 hit in both the UK and America for David Bowie in 1984. The song is a pop-rock number with 1950s musical underpinnings, evoking the style of singer Eddie Cochran. The song was the first single from Bowie's Tonight album, and is generally consider the bright spot in a sonic sea of mediocrity. The track itself was even viewed as a letdown by some fans, but that's generally due to the huge success of the songs on Bowie's prior record Let's Dance. It's certainly not Bowie at his musical best, but it's an important inclusion in any sampling of his work.

"Under Pressure"

When Queen and David Bowie began working together on "Under Pressure" in the early 1980s, they likely had no idea they were about to embark on one of the most successful musical collaborations ever. Bowie, in fact, only planned on contributing back-up vocals to another Queen song, but once he arrived at the studio, the creative sparks flew and "Under Pressure" was born. Bowie would not begin performing the song live until after Freddie Mercury's death in 1991. The song has been covered many times, but was most notably musically revisited by rapper Vanilla Ice who sampled it (without initially giving proper credit) on his mega-hit "Ice Ice Baby." It's also been featured in the Guitar Hero series.

"Waiting for the Man"

If you've never heard David Bowie's cover of The Velvet Underground's "I'm Waiting for the Man," you're missing out on an obscure gem in his musical catalog. Written by Lou Reed, the song was featured on Velvet Underground's 1967 debut album. The lyrics tell the story of a man buying heroin in Harlem, which is surely part of what made it appeal to Bowie who played it live throughout the early '70s -- his period of excess and drug addiction. It can be heard on his Live: Santa Monica '72 album.

"Let's Dance"

"Let's Dance," the lead single from Bowie's 1983 pop/dance album of the same name, marked another dramatic step in the singer's musical/image evolution. Bowie had already achieved global success with hits like "Fame" and "Under Pressure," but "Let's Dance" lifted Bowie into the commercial stratosphere. His first song to chart at #1 in the US and UK, the song served as Bowie's introduction to a new generation of music fans. It remains one of his most popular tracks to this day.

"Young Americans"

The title track from the 1975 Young Americans album, this song was born out of Bowie's infatuation with soul music -- he would later refer to the style of the song as "plastic soul." And while Bowie's particular brand of glam rock had failed to catch on in the States, this track captured the attention of American listeners. The joint sees Bowie dropping in social commentary with references to Watergate, civil rights activist Rosa Parks, and McCarthyism. R&B icon Luther Vandross contributes back-up vocals, and legendary saxophonist David Sanborn plays the alto sax.